Special Operation

"You're not dead."

When Mei Ye returned to the Demon Suppression Bureau, that was the first thing his colleagues said to him.

The Demon Suppression Bureau's headquarters in Jiangbei City was a skyscraper that soared into the clouds.

The building housed all the city's Demon-Suppressing Guards.

These Demon-Suppressing Guards were divided according to rank.

The highest rank was lieutenant, a position with immense authority.

They had private housing, extended vacations, and benefits unmatched anywhere else in the province.

Mei Ye was a probationary Demon-Suppressing Guard who had joined this year. The gap between him and a lieutenant was as vast as heaven and earth.

Mei Ye closed his eyes speechlessly and rubbed his brow. "Thanks to my two seniors, I killed the dog demon and narrowly escaped death."

The person on duty in the Demon Suppression Bureau building was a clerk named Wen Li.

Her job was to record the Demon-Suppressing Guards' assignments at the mission center, then verify, calculate, and file them.

Demon-Suppressing Guards also received bonuses for completing missions.

Assignments were divided into four ranks: A, B, C, and D, based on their importance.

The lowest-ranked D-class mission paid around five hundred yuan.

"If you can still move," Wen Li said as she tapped at her keyboard, "hurry to Moon Lake District and help Lieutenant Wei. There's a new mission. Lieutenant Wei found a Sinking Cult hideout and took a lot of brothers over there."

No wonder...

Mei Ye suddenly understood. No wonder Pang Yu had found him first after his accident—the Demon Suppression Bureau had been busy as well.

"Working overtime in the middle of the night too..."

Mei Ye yawned. "You people in the rear really have it good."

"The more work we do, the more we get paid. But us clerks still don't make as much as you do."

Wen Li gave a bitter smile. "Go quickly. If Lieutenant Wei finds out, he might think you're slacking off. You know what his temper is like."

Wen Li was a girl from the countryside. She did not look down on Mei Ye's former self, and she had also graduated from a cultural university in the same tier as Jiangnan Martial Arts University. Her qualifications were among the best.

"Then help me keep my merit safe."

Mei Ye tossed out a spherical object, which landed on Wen Li's desk with a thud.

The young clerk hurriedly leaned back and cried out, "What is that?"

"A dog's head." Mei Ye picked at his ear and said casually, "This is my credit for killing a demon."

"You really killed that dog demon..."

The young clerk stared in astonishment, then pushed the dog's head onto the floor in disgust.

"Mm, help me record it. Goddess... of Wealth."

Mei Ye smiled, then turned and left.

Moon Lake District's bustling commercial street had already been completely sealed off.

Piercing police sirens tore through the night sky, while red and blue emergency lights flashed continuously across the street.

Lieutenant Wei Wushuang had led his men in surrounding the coffee shop at the corner.

The nearby residents had long since been evacuated. The entire street held only solemn Demon-Suppressing Guards and the crackling static of walkie-talkies.

"These evil cultists are stubborn to the bone!"

Wei Wushuang's face was livid, and his murderous aura seemed almost tangible.

He had warned the cultists inside to surrender quickly.

But the cultists were incredibly stubborn. They had thrown several bombs out, nearly enraging Wei Wushuang to death.

"All personnel, heed my order! Force an assault! Make sure these vile creatures are wiped out in one sweep!"

As the highest-ranking commander on the front line, Wei Wushuang gave the order.

More than a hundred people received the command, drew their long blades, and surged toward the coffee shop in unison.

Soon, under the Demon-Suppressing Guards' fierce assault, raging flames burned as the sounds of fighting filled the street.

The cultists inside the coffee shop had no choice but to attempt a breakout.

"You're walking into a dead end!"

Several lieutenants under Wei Wushuang spotted the targets. Their figures flashed as blades, spears, swords, and halberds all struck the targets.

"Open fire!"

Wei Wushuang shouted, and several soldiers aimed their guns at the demons and fired.

Under the hail of bullets, the cultists struggled to fend them off and fell into a disadvantage.

The coordinated Demon-Suppressing Guards followed their usual training formations, charging forward to strike the cultists hard.

"Protect the Holy Son!"

A white-haired middle-aged man among the cultists roared. Veins bulged across his body as he slammed several lieutenants aside with his thigh, rushed before a young man, seized him by the neck, and leaped away.

"Trying to leave? Not so easily!"

Wei Wushuang let out a furious roar and shot forward like a comet chasing the moon, arriving beside the middle-aged man and striking with his palm.

"Bai Jiaming, stay right there!"

Wei Wushuang had guarded Jiangbei City for many years. His Autumn Rain Divine Palm had reached an extraordinary level, and countless demons, fiends, and devilish villains had died beneath his palms.

The moment Bai Jiaming saw Wei Wushuang, his hair stood on end. He hurriedly met the attack with a palm strike, but Wei Wushuang's powerful true qi traveled through his arm. His blood vessels instantly burst, his sleeve was reduced to dust, and he spat blood as he fell from the air.

"Protector!"

Several cultists cried out and broke away to rush over.

Wei Wushuang snorted coldly at the sight of those cultists. His true qi erupted, and several palm strikes flew through the air, blasting every cultist apart.

"Lieutenant's divine skill is invincible!"

Several captains saw Wei Wushuang mow down the enemies like grass and hurried over to flatter him.

Wei Wushuang stood with his hands behind his back, his expression calm and composed, carrying the bearing of a grandmaster.

He nudged the waist of the cult protector on the ground with his foot and sneered.

"...Bai Jiaming? The lawless Bai Jiaming? That's all you've got?"

Bai Jiaming lay on the ground vomiting blood. He looked bitterly at Wei Wushuang. "Stacked Peaks Sinking Sand... truly formidable..."

Several Demon-Suppressing Guards hurried over and shackled Bai Jiaming with specially made restraints. His aura and expression immediately became listless.

"Lieutenant," a captain ran over with a broad smile, "you've destroyed a Sinking Cult hideout. That's a tremendous achievement in the mayor's eyes."

"It is all thanks to the mayor's excellent leadership."

Wei Wushuang stroked his beard. He was thirty-eight this year, in the prime of his fighting years, with a boundless future ahead of him.

"Bring that so-called Holy Son over."

Wei Wushuang pointed at a young man in the distance. The young man wore a vacant expression, his eyes unfocused, as though his soul had been sucked away.

The Demon-Suppressing Guards brought the young man over. Wei Wushuang studied his face, recalling how to identify cultists. He raised his hand and fired a stream of finger qi, tearing the young man's clothes apart and exposing his shriveled, thin chest.

Wei Wushuang's gaze fell on the young man's chest, but to his surprise, there was no lotus pattern like the one he remembered.

"Damn it! This one is fake!"

Wei Wushuang shouted, all his previous satisfaction vanishing without a trace.

"You bastard! You actually dared to use a fake to confuse us!"

Wei Wushuang kicked Bai Jiaming in the chest. Several of Bai Jiaming's ribs snapped, and he flew five or six meters away like a battered sack.

"Quickly guard every defensive line! Don't let even a fly escape!"

Having come to his senses, Wei Wushuang immediately gave the order.

In an alley on the eastern defensive line.

Probationary Demon-Suppressing Guard Tian Ge wiped down a long blade and handed it to the man beside him.

The man inspected the blade Tian Ge had cleaned and nodded.

Tian Ge revealed an honored smile.

Compared to genuine Demon-Suppressing Guards, probationary guards still had a huge gap to overcome.

People like Tian Ge generally had to follow their seniors, learn from them, and run errands for several years before passing the assessment and becoming full members.

But serving seniors was never easy. There were plenty of old team members who threw their weight around and vented their frustration on newcomers. Many of Tian Ge's peers had been tormented into constant depression.

The senior assigned to him, however, was already one of the good ones.

He spoke little, did not make things difficult for others, and never put on a sour face.

Compared with those old Demon-Suppressing Guards who constantly berated newcomers, he could be considered gentle.

Among those who had joined the Demon Suppression Bureau this year, Tian Ge's talent was fairly good. Through diligent cultivation, his strength had reached the fifth level of Body Tempering!

As long as he worked for a few more years and mastered the Demon Suppression Bureau's martial arts, once he reached the eighth level of Body Tempering, he could become a true Demon-Suppressing Guard!

"Hehe..."

Tian Ge thought happily. The image of someone his age appeared in his mind, and his sense of superiority immediately intensified.

The gap between people only became clear through comparison. Compared to certain classmates who were bullied by old-timers every day, like Mei Ye—

He was practically a heaven-blessed genius!

"Stay alert."

The Demon-Suppressing Guard beside him suddenly interrupted Tian Ge's daydream. His left hand rested on his blade.

"Yes!"

Tian Ge hurriedly nodded, putting on an expression of utmost vigilance.

But inwardly, he did not take it seriously. According to the girl on the comms, the lieutenant on the front lines was already locked in battle with the cultists. Their execution was only a matter of time.

Tian Ge yawned. It was late at night, and he wanted to go back to sleep.

Suddenly,

A shadow appeared in the alley, and a chilling aura spread through the air.

Demon-Suppressing Guard Jiang Lide's eyes sharpened. With a swish, he drew his blade.

"Something's wrong!"

Tian Ge jolted awake, and all thoughts of slacking off vanished.

Jiang Lide raised his blade horizontally and shouted, "Stop! This passage is closed!"

The newcomer ignored Jiang Lide and instead charged rapidly into the alley.

Jiang Lide's expression darkened. He stepped forward to meet him, and the Righteous Qi Saber Art sent several waves of force slashing through the air.

Yet the newcomer did not even blink. With a wave of his hand, he scattered the force waves and charged at Tian Ge.

Jiang Lide's expression changed drastically. "Danger!"

His figure flashed, and Jiang Lide instantly appeared in front of Tian Ge, slashing down with his blade.

The newcomer caught the blade between two fingers and snapped it, then struck viciously toward Jiang Lide's chest, instantly piercing through it.

Jiang Lide's breathing stopped. His face turned deathly pale as his body flew backward and rolled several times. He struggled to rise, but ultimately spat blood and collapsed.

"Ant."

The face beneath the black robe looked down disdainfully at Jiang Lide. Carrying a young man on his back, he strode unhurriedly toward Jiang Lide, two gleaming golden fingers aimed at the Demon-Suppressing Guard.

"No."

Tian Ge shut his eyes in anguish. Jiang Lide was dead, and he would probably be silenced next!

Clang—!

Just as the newcomer was about to kill Jiang Lide, a blade slashed toward him.

The attacker frowned and struck out with his hand. It collided with the blade in a metallic clash, sending a wave of force rolling outward.

Hearing the commotion, Jiang Lide looked over with exhausted eyes.

Before him stood a young man, standing against the wind with a formidable long blade in hand. His black hair fluttered behind him, and he looked like a god of war.